CFI Calls on Indian Government to Protect LGBT Rights in Face of Supreme Court Decision

December 20, 2013

The Center for Inquiry (CFI) on Friday, December 20, 2013, wrote the Indian Ambassador to the United States, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, to share serious concerns over a recent decision by the Indian Supreme Court to overturn a lower court's ruling striking down a law prohibiting "intercourse against the order of nature."

CFI urged Ambassador Jaishankar to relay to leaders within the Indian government its hope that they continue to push for the reforms necessary to keep India an example of a secular democracy that protects the rights of all persons.

"For much of the world, India has been a solid example of how a secular government can not only survive, but also flourish, in a religious society," CFI's letter stated. "The longer this Supreme Court decision is left to stand, the more India’s reputation as a secular democracy will suffer. But worse, countless innocent Indian citizens will continue to face harassment and persecution simply because of their sexual orientation."

Office of Public Policy

Washington, D.C.

Michael De Dora is director of CFI's Office of Public Policy and the organization's representative to the U.N. Michael has an M.A. in political theory from Brooklyn College, and a B.A. in Rhetoric and Communication from the University at Albany. He also blogs at: www.themoralperspective.com